


In Which Ishizu Never Made it to Battle City

by LizzieHopscotch



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Battle City Arc, Dialogue Heavy, F/M, Humor, I made an attempt to to write duel monsters and failed, Swearing, because i am a fool, hey look what happened, i wrote another one, like most of it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-29
Updated: 2017-06-29
Packaged: 2018-11-21 06:59:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11352240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizzieHopscotch/pseuds/LizzieHopscotch
Summary: Somehow, against all odds, common sense and maybe the rules of time and space, Téa became the eighth duellist at Battle City.





	In Which Ishizu Never Made it to Battle City

**Author's Note:**

> Hey look I wrote more Téa fic!
> 
> This has nothing to do with the one I wrote before, but for some reason this premise wouldn't leave me alone and so here we are!
> 
>  
> 
> _Yugi_  
>  **  
> _Yami Yugi_  
>  **

Honestly, she hadn’t expected it to go this far.

She really, really, super hadn’t.

Swear on friendship.

It’s just…when the boys got their duel disks and she saw the rating system she got curious. So when she got home that evening she logged on to the KC Duellist Database and on a whim (mostly) looked herself up.

Well.

Wasn’t _that_ interesting.

At three stars, she had enough to qualify, even if her rarest card was blank. It seemed Kaiba had included results from way back when, when the game was new and Téa was…not that bad at it really. She hadn’t kept up with the game and her deck was in dire need of tweaking but…maybe.

But then.

Nah.

Silly idea.

But if _Joey_ could.

Joey who trained for weeks with Grandpa!

Oh please, with all the cheering, she had the basics down flat.

Monster, spell, trap.

Combine, attack, lose a few life points, heart of the cards.

Boom.

Done.

So…not a silly idea?

She smothered herself with a pillow.

_This was a terrible idea._

She could tell no one.

She fell asleep turning the idea over in her head and the more she thought about it the less silly it seemed.

Which is how, at eight-fifty the following morning she found herself outside the registration centre applying for own place in the Battle City Tournament.

“Rare card?” the lady behind the desk asked.

“Gyakutenno Megami?”

“Okay. Congratulations! Welcome to Battle City!”

“Thank you!” Téa decidedly did _not_ squeak and she did _not_ run away.

~*~

Kaiba knew.

Obviously.

He knew all the notable names of everyone who entered the tournament and when Mokuba came along, saying that Téa had entered.

Well.

After he’d finished laughing he dismissed it.

She wouldn’t get far.

~*~

If anyone asked she was looking for her friends because she was worried.

It was not so that she knew they wouldn’t come along and see her duelling.

And…winning?

~*~

When Kaiba saw Téa sitting in that chair, after the worry and the fear and the for fuck sakes what magic crap _now_ , his first thought was: this girl has balls.

There she was, tied to a chair about to be crushed by a crate and all she could do was demand he save her friends. Even when she’d first been taken, her actions had led to Mokuba escaping. And that was the sort of debt he didn’t like having.

When it was finished, and Wheeler and Yugi were once more the bosommest of bosom pals, he spared a thought for her progress. A quick message to his offices and there was an answer.

Huh.

~*~

Well.

At least she still had her deck.

And…her locator cards? Did they really not steal those too? I mean, they took her duel disk why not go the whole hog?

She didn’t think there’d be enough time for her to get another one either. Dammit all that hard work down the drain!

“Don’t worry about it,” came a low drawl to her left. A startled glance revealed Kaiba smirking down at her, watching her every move.

“There’ll be spares at the finals.”

He walked away, coat flaring dramatically around his legs.

Well.

Shit.

~*~

The finals were being held on a blimp.

Because why not right?

Only fucking Kaiba.

They hadn’t asked for her locator cards when they arrived, only surreptitiously handed her a key card with her number on.

Eight.

It looked like Kaiba was leaving it up to her to come clean to her friends. Which really wasn’t fair, it wasn’t like she was keeping it a secret she just hadn’t told anyone.

Completely different.

True to his word, when she went into her room she found a duel disk ready and waiting. She didn’t put it on. Until she was duelling, what was the point right?

It was difficult to focus on her friends. It felt like someone had put her guts through a blender and stuffed them back inside her.

Oh god.

What was she _thinking_.

It was a random idea, a thought, a whim. It was meant to be something for her, to prove she could do something too. And then mystic powers got involved, the fate of the world, the lives of her and her friends placed directly in the line of fire.

She could have stopped this at any time.

She _should_ have stopped it.

But every time she thought about it, about giving up, pulling out, surrendering. Hand over the locator cards, her fairy queen card and forget the whole thing ever happened.

And then she’d remember her friends. She’d remember them fighting through impossible odds to win and the part of her that supported and admired that downright recoiled in disgust at the thought of throwing in the towel now.

Besides.

It was kinda fun when mystical powers weren’t involved.

She did her best to squash the ugly relief she had when Joey and Mai drew Orion and Marik.

She forgot that left one other person.

~*~

Kaiba was disappointed.

He’d expected a challenge and instead.

He got.

 _T_ _éa Gardner_.

Cheerleader extraordinaire, champion of friendship, Miss Positive herself.

He was going to be sick.

He stood atop the duelling platform, not really listening as Wheeler brayed about the mystery duellist.

There was no way she was going to show up, not when this gave her such a neat escape. No one except him knew who the eighth duellist was, all she had to do was come out the elevator, join her friends and stand around innocently.

God this was boring.

He heard Yugi talking, Téa was checking on Bakura.

Convenient.

Oh.

Wait.

Here we go.

The elevator was moving.

The door was opening.

Well now.

This should be interesting.

~*~

What. Was. She. Thinking.

Oh shit.

Oh shit.

Oh _fuck._

_Breathe T_ _éa._

Must. Remember. To. Breathe.

“Uh. Téa?”

“Yes, Joey?”

“Is that a duel disk?”

She looked at her arm. “Yes, it is,”

“I’m confused,”

“What a shock,” Kaiba interrupted. “Are we doing this or not, Gardner?”

Téa climbed the steps.

Remember, she told herself. Without mystic powers involved this was _fun_.

“I wasn’t expecting you to show up,”

Was that her imagination, but was that a grudging _respect_ in his voice?

“Well,” she shrugged. “I got this far, might as well keep going,”

“Your journey ends here.”

“Probably!”

His eyebrow twitched.

“Don’t take this as a joke, you pathetic excuse for a duellist. I’m going to crush you!”

“Isn’t that your usual insult for Joey? Can’t come up with anything different?”

What.

Was.

She.

Doing.

(“I don’t know whether to be offended or impressed,”

“Who cares. Go Téa!”)

Kaiba smirked.

Okay.

She’s got this.

~*~

“Don’t give up Téa!”

“Did you know she could duel?”

“I knew she had the basics, but she was never that interested,”

 _Do you think she can win this? **Against Kaiba? No. But she’ll make him work for that victory**_.

“Why didn’t she tell us?”

“Maybe she was worried?”

“About what?”

“What if she didn’t do well, she might not have wanted anyone to see it.”

“But she’s always been there for us!”

“So, _we_ have to be there for her now!”

~*~

“Your friends make me sick,”

“You’ve been saying that for years, and yet you still let us all on board,”

“It’s no fun if there are no witnesses to my opponent’s abject humiliation,”

“I don’t feel that humiliated,”

“Trust me, you will. You’ll regret entering this tournament and dirtying it with your subpar duelling skills,”

“Is that your worst insult? Seriously? You sound like a broken record,”

“You’ll regret saying that. I sacrifice my two monsters to summon your worst nightmare – The Blue Eyes White Dragon!”

“Actually, my worst nightmare is currently having to listen to you brag on repeat. So, this duel really. I activate my magic card Fissure, destroying your Blue Eyes,”

“What!”

(“Yeah! You show him Téa!”)

“Magic card. Destroys Blue Eyes.”

“I know that! I just…”

“Wasn’t expecting me to be able to do that? How do you think I _got_ here?”

“Point taken. Alright then Gardner, dazzle me.”

“You are such a jerk, Kaiba,”

“Now who’s repeating insults,”

“I wasn’t aware you actually listened to anything I said, Kaiba,”

(“Are they duelling or flirting?”

“Oh god please don’t say both,”)

“I don’t. Well. I’m waiting,”

“Alright then! I summon Shining Friendship,”

“Why am I not surprised _you_ have that card,”

“You want the speech? You’re a captive audience here y’know,”

“Friendship is awesome. I am a terrible person,”

“Tell me someone recorded that,”

“No one would believe it was real,”

(“I never want to be reminded of this ever,”

“Ditto,”)

“I activate Elf’s Light, giving my Shining Friendship an extra 400 points. Now, attack Kaiba’s life points!”

“Sorry Téa, but fun as this has been, this ends here. You didn’t think that I would let you destroying my Blue Eyes go, did you?”

“ _Let_ me?”

“I activate Monster Reborn, and, summon a card I discarded earlier. Try not to faint in fear as I summon Obelisk the Tormenter! This is end for you Téa!”

(“That Kaiba, he didn’t have to go that far!”

 _Joey’s right! It’s just mean, there’s no way T_ _éa can withstand Obelisk!_ **_I think this is the only way Kaiba knows how to show his respect to an opponent, by summoning the strongest monster he has._** _Kaiba? Respect T_ _éa? **No one knew she had even entered the tournament Yugi, she could have just walked away. Instead she chose to stand and fight. Even Kaiba respects that kind of determination**_.)

“Well, shoot. At least it was fun,”

“Obelisk is going to destroy every pathetic monster you have and all you can say is ‘oh shoot’,”

“I didn’t think you wanted Mokuba to learn a whole new vocabulary,”

“I appreciate that. You ready?”

“Sure thing! Yugi and Joey are gonna crush you like a bug!”

“Usually the delusions start after the attack,”

“Please like I would think anything else,”

“At this point I would be disappointed.”

“Aw Kaiba, you do care,”

“Shut it, dork. Enough stalling! Obelisk destroy her monsters!”

“Oh no!”

“That was the weakest shock I have ever heard,”

“Why would I be shocked? I knew it was coming,”

“Just shut up and lose,”

“Kay!”

(“Oh, thank god it’s over,”)

If Obelisk seemed a little bit gentler with the utter destruction this time, no one was going to mention it.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! 
> 
> Téa's rare card is this one. I have no idea if it's rare, not rare, common as muck. I just thought it was pretty.
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> Let me know what you think!
> 
> Much hugs,
> 
> Lizzie Hopscotch


End file.
